NOVEL NEXT Chapter 80
Chapter 80
Upon hearing the news that Kaya had returned from the 69th floor, Gremony rushed out to greet her. As Kaya stepped down from the carriage and saw Gremony waiting for her, she smiled brightly.
“I’m back, Your Majesty.”
“Welcome back. What did you find out on the 69th floor?”
“First of all, I must tell you that I judged the truth of everything with my own eyes.”
Gremony nodded. She was well aware of what Kaya’s magical eye was capable of. It was more reliable than any words.
“First, I have unfortunate news… Achilles was indeed killed by a human.”
“That’s nonsense…!”
The one reacting was not Gremony but Vitos, who had come out with her. He still refused to believe that Achilles had been killed by a human.
As Vitos immediately protested, Gremony glanced back at him.
“Vitos, I’m listening.”
“I-I’m sorry, Your Majesty.”
“Please continue, Kaya.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. However, Achilles was not killed by an ordinary human.”
“Not ordinary?”
Gremony recalled the letter she had read earlier.
“Are you talking about the bow mentioned in the letter?”
“Yes, it seems that a divine power was felt from that bow. When I received that information, my eyes determined it all to be true.”
“…That means a real angel was involved in this incident!?”
“Yes.”
Kaya affirmed. And Gremony mentioned what she was now realizing as a shocking fact.
“They used humans to invade the Demon World.”
Kaya recounted all the conversations she had shared with Nahun to Gremony. With the information she had learned and the proposal made at the 69th floor, Gremony couldn’t help but smile.
“Is that so?”
“Yes, they were looking for an alliance as well.”
The proposal to form an alliance to elevate their ranks and minimize damage when the Great War of Angels would occur. Naturally, Gremony welcomed it.
“It seems I need to prepare to go to the 69th floor. Was it Nahun? I must meet him in person.”
“Your Majesty, before that…”
Kaya smirked slyly.
“You should reward me first, right?”
“Kaya, how dare you!”
Vitos snapped angrily, but Kaya tilted her head in confusion.
“Isn’t that why I completed this mission? What’s so disrespectful about it?”
“I simply dislike that attitude from the start. What do you think you are to the Lord?”
“Enough, Vitos.”
Gremony lightly restrained Vitos and turned to Kaya. Kaya looked directly at Gremony as she spoke.
“If you don’t wish to reward me, it’s fine to give me something else. Anything you give me is good enough.”
“That’s alright. I gave you the mission, and it was my words that promised a reward.”
Gremony seemed to turn back to the audience room and spoke simply.
“Come to my bedroom tonight, Kaya.”
“…Yes, Your Majesty!”
#
In Seere’s office, a letter arrived. The content was a letter from the ruler of the 55th floor, Gremony, stating that she would personally come down to the 69th floor to forge an alliance.
Nahun confirmed the letter with his own eyes and sighed.
“He really planned to give everything from the start….”
“What about the floors?”
“Yes.”
“But Teacher, we’ve received everything we wanted, haven’t we? Why are you disappointed?”
In response to Seere’s question, Nahun explained simply.
“While it’s true we got what we desired, from another perspective, this proposal has failed.”
“What do you mean?”
“We had to apply pressure on Gremony through this alliance proposal. We needed to exert influence. Do you understand why?”
“Um… Is it because we’re behind in ranking?”
“You answered very well.”
As Nahun nodded in approval, Seere smiled brightly. Nahun continued speaking.
“That’s why I made the unreasonable demand for them to relinquish all conquered floors….”
“You didn’t expect them to concede all of that.”
“Who could have predicted that they also had that intention?”
If the characters were clearly outlined, it would have been easier to understand, but that was not the case.
‘What the hell…’
Nahun pondered what he had touched to cause such a drastic change in the storyline. And he couldn’t fathom why Gremony wanted him to hand over the floors and seek an alliance.
Nahun rubbed his temples with a groan. At that moment, Seere showed a cute smile and spoke.
“Don’t worry, Teacher. I’ll find out what her intentions are.”
“Really?”
“After all, Gremony said she was coming to the 55th floor, right? So, there will be a chance for me to have a private meeting with her.”
“…That’s true.”
When he formed an alliance with Citri before, Nahun had full authority, but not now. The diplomatic authority had shifted to Seere, so once Gremony arrived, Seere would meet with her privately. Nahun felt a bit anxious about that. Gremony was a mid-tier Demon King, and it might be burdensome for inexperienced Seere to handle a one-on-one encounter.
However, contrary to Nahun’s worries, Seere was not intimidated at all. She gently placed her hand over her heart.
“Just trust me.”
Seeing Seere express such firm confidence, Nahun couldn’t help but admire her honestly.
‘…She has grown.’
He felt as though this girl was truly becoming someone who could help him. Nahun nodded and replied.
“I trust you.”
“Yes.”
Knock, knock!
At that moment, there was an urgent knock. Nahun gestured for Seere to stay seated and opened the door to his office.
“Cain.”
“N-Nahun!”
Cain appeared somewhat flustered. Nahun asked with a serious expression.
“What’s going on?”
“An angel has appeared on the 72nd floor.”
“…What?”
#
“Kamael….”
On the 72nd floor of the Demon World, the only layer directly connected to the human realm had a stranger step into it. Though he looked like an ordinary human, it was obvious he was not.
A pair of pure white feathered wings sprouted from his back, along with a platinum ring floating above his head—things that surely did not belong to humans. This was part of the angelic race, one of the types that made up the Celestials.
This angel’s name was Dobiel. He had come to the Demon World as a servant of the Archangel Kamael, the ruler of Geburah.
“To send me to a place like this… is it really too much?”
Feeling the dense magic power enveloping the Demon World, Dobiel was irritated. The magic possessed by the demon race and demons was opposing to the divine power that angels held. Just breathing in the atmosphere thick with magic made it unpleasant.
“By the way, having been sent with the artifact bestowed by Metatron, it seems humans are truly useless.”
Dobiel didn’t understand Metatron’s interest in humans. Of course, it was the superior’s thoughts and decisions, so he wouldn’t argue, but seeing the uselessness of humans occasionally made him wonder if they needed to be looked after.
Deciding to stop whining here, he focused again on performing the command given by Kamael.
“Now… it’s time to find… ”
What Dobiel was ordered to do was singular. To draw out the great demon associated with the Demon World. To make the great demon reveal itself, an incident was essential.
Dobiel summoned his powerful divine power. By pouring divine power into the 72nd floor, it was expected that the great demon would respond, as per Kamael’s words.
“Alright then… ”
But at that moment.
Boom!!
A powerful spell fell where Dobiel was standing. While he managed to evade in time, the very fact that he had been found and attacked was perplexing.
Dobiel looked up to see who had attacked him, and he couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.
“How dare a filthy creature set foot in a place like this?”
“Why are you here in the Demon World, then?”
The one who attacked him was a demon, someone famously known as a direct subordinate of the great demon, and Dobiel recognized him well.
“Demogorgon.”
The assailant was Demogorgon, a loyal retainer of the great demon Golraph. Just as Dobiel recognized him, Demogorgon also noticed Dobiel and raised an eyebrow slightly.
“Ah, so it’s you, Dobiel. Does the Archangel dare to send an angel into the Demon World? Are you trying to start the Great War of Angels?”
“Do you think we want to start the Great War of Angels?”
Dobiel laughed bitterly.
“Speak correctly. You’re the ones who are showing signs first.”
“Signs? What are you talking about…?”
“Stop your pathetic excuses. You sent a demon into the human realm first.”
“…”
Demogorgon frowned. His lord had informed him that they hadn’t yet intervened in the human realm. If so…
“Either another great demon is involved, or it was ordered by the one present here.”
Demogorgon had come to the 72nd floor for a reason somewhat similar to Dobiel’s. To draw out Nehemot’s ruler, who was almost certainly within the region.
After Abaddon, who had been sent a while ago, disappeared without a trace, Golraph had sent Demogorgon with the words:
“Eradicate any reason for her to remain. Then she will naturally return.”
Demogorgon worried about the repercussions, but Golraph had likened it to a hurricane. Just as a storm blows fiercely and eventually disappears, he had said everything would return to normal after a brief period of chaos.
Demogorgon had to follow his master’s orders. A heavenly being getting in the way of this process was unacceptable.
“I will not tolerate any more nonsense.”
Demogorgon unleashed the immense magic power characteristic of a direct subordinate of the great demon from within his body.
“Turn back if you don’t want to die.”
“Hah… how absurd.”
Dobiel also could not retreat. This was an order from Archangel Kamael, representing the will of the entire Celestial Realm.
And just as Demogorgon was a direct subordinate of the great demon, Dobiel was a direct subordinate of the Archangel as well. There was no reason to feel intimidated, nor could he retreat.
Dobiel fully unleashed his divine power, enough to eliminate the thick malevolent magic surrounding the Demon World.
“Shall we see who dies?”
While neither were a great demon or an archangel, they were high-ranking demons and high-ranking angels, respectively. If the two truly began to clash, the very lowest layer of the Demon World, the 72nd floor, wouldn’t withstand the confrontation.
The situation was tense to the point where the 72nd floor could collapse at any moment. At that moment, someone capable of subduing both powerful beings appeared.
“I received a report that an angel had appeared….”
Golden eyes shining through jet-black hair turned toward Demogorgon.
“And a demon as well.”